Venetian blind



C. S. EVANS VENETIAN BLIND Jan. 24, 1956 Filed Oct. 10, 1950 United States Patent VENETIAN BLIND Charles S. Evans, Atherton, Calif. Application October 10, 1950, Serial No. 189,365

' Claims. 01. 160-473) This application is a continuation-in-part of each of my two copending applications, Serial Number 703,182 filed October 14, 1946, now U. S. Patent No. 2,669,301, and Serial Number 719,347 filed December 31, 1946.

My invention relates to Venetian blinds; and the object of the invention is to provide a Venetian blind structure of the removable slat type in which the ladder tape is also readily removable and replaceable for cleaning, repairs and replacement. Another object of the invention is the simplification of manufacture and assembly of the ladder tape and slats of a Venetian blind. Another object is the provision of a Venetian blind structure which opens to the housewife many opportunities for variation in the decorative scheme of her blinds.

'My invention possesses otherobjects and features of value, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of my invention. It is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the showing made by the said description, and the drawings, as I may adopt variant forms of my invention within the scope of the appended claims.

Venetian blinds in common use throughout the United States and abroad, with all their attractiveness and utility, have a major fault which has seriously limited their adoption and use. Cleaning is so diflicult that it is usually neglected; and repair and replacement of parts are usually beyond the capacity of any but a specialist skilled in their construction and maintenance.

In my invention a construction is provided in which each slat is demountably carried in the ladder tapes so that it can easily be digitally detached, and lifted out to be cleaned or replaced. The ladder tape is also demountably connected to its cooperating parts, so that it can be readily taken off for cleaning or replacement.

This quality of ready removability of slats and tapes not only reduces to simple terms the major problem of cleaning and maintenance, but greatly enlarges the range of decorative use of both slats and tape, since it permits with small expense of time, effort and money substitutions and combinations of shades and tones, not possible in the ordinary Venetian blind without prohibitive cost.

Referring to the drawings: Figure 1 is a front elevation of a Venetian blind embodying my invention. Portions of the front vertical web of one of the ladder tapes are omitted to disclose the parts behind it; and other portions are omitted to reduce the size of the figure. Figure 2 is a sectional View of the ladder tape taken in a horizontal plane indicated by the line 22 of Figure l, the slat being removed to disclose the twin rung tapes or cords, and the ring or eye member of the snap fastener with which a demountable connection between rung tapes and slat is secured. Figure 3 is an elevation partly in yertical section, showing on an enlarged scale that portion of Figure 1 which is enclosed by the dotted circle 3.

Figure 4 is a top view of one end of the tilt rail, shown in Figure l, and of the saddle mounting for the tape. The

Figure 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view through the bottom rail and lower slat. The plane of section is indicated by the line 55 of Figure 1. In all of the figures small or thin parts are necessarily shown somewhat out of scale.

A Venetian blind generally includes a series of thin horizontal slats, with mechanism for adjusting their'vertical position to vary the amount of window opening covered; and mechanism for tilting the slats with reference to the horizontal plane in order to vary the degree of opening of the blind; at all times the slats being maintained in parallelism. My invention is not primarily concerned with either the lifting cord lock or the tilting mechanism; excellent devices for those purposes having long been available. These portions of the blind embodied in my invention will therefore be referred to, but not explained in detail.

My blind comprises a ceiling board 2 having a tilting head 3 of common worm gear type at one end, and a bracket 4 at the other end forming part of the cord lock 6. A tilt rail 7 is supported between the tilting head and wardly from the tilt rail to the bottom rail 16. A detachable fastening means 17, preferably of snap fastener type, secures the end of each web to the bottom rail.

By snap fastener, I mean a two-part releasable connecting device, comprising an annularly grooved or tapered stud which is fixed on or formed in one of the parts to be connected, and a resilient eye or ring usually split, into which the stud may be inserted to be resiliently held thereby, and which is fixed on or formed in the other part. The stud may be solid with resilience built into the eye, or the stud may be resilient with the associated eye a simple round hole.

The upper ends of the ladder tape webs are releasably connected by snap fasteners 18 to opposite ends of the saddle 19, fixed by double pointed tacks 21 to the top surface of the tilting rail; and hanging free over the curved sides of the rail as shown in Figure 1. The saddle may be made of thin leather, flexible plastic-0r woven fabric stitched about the ,cut edges to prevent raveling. When laid out flat the saddle has the shape of an elongated ring. The center opening 22 provides a free space surrounding the groove 23 in the side of the tilt rail, through which the lifting cord 24 passes.

The proportion and arrangement of parts are such that when the tilt rail is horizontal the bottom rail is also horizontal. Extending between the vertical webs 12 and 13 of each ladder tape are the rung tapes 26 and 27 on which the slats 10 lie; and these are evenly spaced lengthwise of the webs so that the slats lying thereon will maintain parallelism with each other and with the tilt and bottom rails.

The rung tapes 26 and 27 are arranged in pairs; and are formed of twisted cord or a braided tubular body which flattens into a strong, double-thickness, rather narrow cord-like tape. The ends of the cross tapes are woven or sewed to the webs. Slidably and demountably arranged on selected pairs of cross tapes are the snap fastener slides 28. Each slide includes one element of a snap fastener, While the associated slat carries the other element. Economy of manufacture and practical values determine whether the slide shall carry the eye or ring element 31 of the fastener as in Figure 2, or the stud element. Where the slat 10 is of wood as in Figure 3, its thickness makes it preferable to fix the stud element 33 on the slat, and the eye element 31 on the slide. The same is true when the slat is made of soft and springless metal such as aluminum. Where the slat is made of thin steel, the eye element may be formed integrally in the material with suitable dies, the stud then being formed on the slide.

While a slide may be mounted on each set of twin tapes, with an associate fastener element near each end of each slat, it is preferred for reasons involving costs of manufacture and ease with which the slats may be detached and taken out, to use but one snap fastener slide to a slat; and to stagger these in the two ladders, so that as to each ladder, alternate slats are secured to the twin tapes, the other end of the fastened slat being unsecured to the twin tapes on which it lies.

The twin cross tapes are symmetrically fixed to the vertical webs, and the fastener element is of course placed an equal distance from the end in all the slats, so that when the slats are connected to the slides each slat is aligned laterally with other slats and with the bottom rail. It is to be noted that the slat is demountably secured by the slide to the twin supporting tapes, and through them to the vertical webs of the ladder. The eye demands alignment of the slats with the ladder Webs which are the dominant vertical element in the design formed by the blind as a whole. The twin cross tapes are held taut by the weight of the slats; and since the slat is fastened to the twin tapes, accurate alignment is assured.

The snap fastener slide shown in Figures 2 and 3 comprises a piece of thin sheet metal such as steel or hard brass which possesses a considerable degree of springiness or resilience, so that it tends to retain the shape imparted by the forming dies. It has a central main body portion 36 in the center of which is formed the eye or ring element 31 of a snap fastener. This may vary in detail, but essentially the edges must yield resiliently to receive and retain the head of the stud 33, which conveniently may comprise the stud-bearing cap 37 on the lower face of the slat 10, caught by a shank on the head 38 on the upper face of the slat. The shank pierces the slat, and is locked in the stud. It has been found that a hole a few thousandths of an inch smaller than the head of the stud, and having six evenly spaced round-end slots 39 extending radially about 7 into the body material, provide a satisfactory eye element. Other forms of course are available.

From the flat central portion 36, the body of the slide from the edge of the central portion so that the twin cross tapes can be forced through into the loops, the tabs yielding resiliently when the tapes are pulled into the angle between the sloping portion and the tab edge. The width of the slide between the loops is preferably a bit narrower than the free spacing of the twin tapes so that they converge toward the slide and therefore minimize longitudinal movement of the slat secured thereto.

The shape and proportion of parts is such that when the slat is snapped into engagement with the slide, the contact is between the central portion 36 of the slide and the cap 37 of the stud. Movement of the slide along the cross tapes is free so that when the slats are turned at an angle, each slide-secured end falls, equally with the opposite end, to its natural position in the slanting pocket or bight formed by the cross tapes, thus maintaining parallelism in the slats in all positions.

From the foregoing explanation it will be clear that the slats are readily demountable; and that any one or all of them may be detached from the rung tapes by separation of the fastener elements, and then removed from the blind for cleansing or other treatment, after which they may be reinserted and snapped in place. If it is desired to remove the slides, the cross tapes are easily pulled out from under the tabs.

Means are provided for lifting the bottom rail so that as it rises, the slats are successively stacked thereon, until all are collected at the top of the blind between it and the tilt rail. On its upper face the ceiling board is formed with a groove in which lie the two strands 24 of the lifting cord hanging down at the right of the blind in the loop 46. One strand at the left of the blind passes over a pulley 47 and down through the underlying saddle 19 and groove 23 in the rear edge of the tilt rail, then down between the rear edge of the slats and the rear web 13 and between the twin rungs supporting each slat, to the bottom rail where the end passes through a groove 48 and terminates in a knot 49 seated in a recess 51 formed to one side of the center in the bottom of the rail where it is covered by the bottom end 52 of the web.

The other strand of the lifting cord at the right end of the blind passes over pulley 53, and extends down similarly but in front of the slats and next to the front web 12.

As the blind is pulled up from its lower position to stack the slats on the lower rail, the lifting cord moves smoothly upwardly with no lateral contact with the twin cross tapes since it lies midway between them; and with but light engagement with slat and web. Because each lifting cord, from bottom rail to top pulley, is almost free of frictional drag, except for a slight amount from the web which decreases as the blind is raised, my blind is noticeably easy to operate. Because of the balanced distribution of stresses on the webs, which results from the twin rung tapes, there is no tendency to uneven folding of the webs, which gather into vertically aligned and even folds as the blind rises. This result is materially aided by the securernent of the slats to the rung tapes since that construction tends to prevent relative lateral movement of either one while promoting vertical alignment of the slats as the stack forms.

If it is desired to clean or replace the ladder tapes, the slats are first unsnapped and removed. The lower snaps 17 are then opened to free the bottom rail from the lower ends of each ladder web. The knotted ends of the lifting cords are next disengaged from the recesses 51 in the bottom face of the rail, and the rail removed. By disengaging the snaps 18 on both sides of the saddle, the ladder tape may be pulled free, leaving the lifting cords hanging loose from the tilt rail, ready for reassembly of ladder tape, bottom rail and slats.

In Figures 2, 3 and 5, the slide is shown with the eye part of the snap fastener, and the slat with the stud part. This is preferable when the slats are made of aluminum, plastic, or other material lacking the resilience to form an eye, the slide being then conveniently made of hard brass or steel. Where the slat is made of steel, the eye may be punched in the slat and the stud carried by the slide. However, regardless of Whether the slat carries the eye or the stud, it is preferred to arrange a fastener part at each end so that the slat may be reversed end for-end.

I claim:

1. A saddle piece for demountably connecting the two webs of a length of ladder tape to the tilt rail in a Venetian blind structure, comprising a flexible sheet having substantially the shape of an elongated ring, the length of the ring being sufiicient to overlie the top face of the tilt rail and extend in flexible tab ends past the lateral.

sides of the tilt rail and the hole of the ring being long enough to overlie a lateral side, and a fastener element in each tab end for union with a companion fastener element on the tape web.

2. Ln a Venetian blind, slats, a tilt rail substantially the same width as the slats, a ladder tape supporting the slats and including vertical webs, a flexible saddle fixed on the tilt rail and having an end extending downwardly on each side of the tilt rail, and snap fastener elements on the saddle ends and on the ends of the webs for demountably and flexibly connecting the ladder tape to the saddle.

3. In a Venetian blind having slats, a tilt rail substantially the same width as the slats, a saddle fixed on the tilt rail and having an opening therethrough overlying a side of the tilt rail and having a flexible end extending downwardly below the tilt rail on each side, a ladder tape supporting the slats and including a pair of vertical webs, a lifting cord between one of the webs and the slats and extending through the saddle opening and above the tilt rail, and snap fastener means releasably connecting each flexible saddle end to the upper end of a web.

4. In a Venetian blind, slats, a tilt rail substantially the same width as the slats, a saddle arranged on the tilt rail and having a flexible end extending downwardly on each side of the rail, a ladder tape in which the slats are supported and including a pair of vertical webs spaced apart substantially the width of the tilt rail, and a snap fastener for releasably connecting the end of each web to an end of the saddle.

5. In a Venetian blind, a tilt rail, a flexible saddle arranged on the tilt rail and having a flexible end extending downwardly on each side of the rail, said saddle having an opening therethrough alined with a side of the rail, a ladder tape including a pair of vertical webs connected by rung tapes, a bottom rail, means releasably connecting one of the webs to each side of the saddle and to the bottom rail, slats supported on the rung tapes and demountably connected thereto, and a lifting cord releasably connected to one side of the bottom rail and extending upwardly between one of the webs and the slats and through the opening in the saddle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,994,194 Fisher Mar. 12, 1935 2,058,159 Kuyper Oct. 20, 1936 2,103,394 Wade Dec. 28, 1937 2,114,057 Lorentzen Apr. 12, 1938 2,123,817 Warren July 12, 1938 2,181,412 Wood Nov. 28, 1939 2,200,349 Walker May 14, 1940 2,285,033 Judels et al. June 2, 1942 2,307,278 Krantz Jan. 5, 1943 2,381,060 Kahn Aug. 7, 1945 2,533,298 Walker Dec. 12, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 2,037 Great Britain 1888 19,321 Great Britain 1895 7,065 Great Britain 1899 24,366 Great Britain 1910 

